Restoration Times Magazine January February 2018

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VOL. 8 | No. 1 | January-February 2018

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A R T I C L E S

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3 | Spiritual Renewal at Passover

by Alan Mansager

7 | Did the Apostles Eat Jelly Beans?

12 | Discovering the Real Temple Mount - Part 2

by Randy Folliard

20 | Frequently Asked Questions

by Alan Mansager

10 | The Religious Recluse by the late Donald R. Mansager

23 | Letters

2018 Biblical Observances COVER: Depiction of the Ark of the Covenant sitting in the Temple at Jerusalem. istock

Passover memorial - evening of March 31 Feast of Unleavened Bread - April 2-8 Feast of Weeks - May 27 Feast of Trumpets - September 11 Day of Atonement - September 20 Feast of Tabernacles - September 25-October 1 Last Great Day - October 2

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Restoration Times expounds the close ties between the Old and New Testaments. We teach the continuity and harmony that extend from Yahweh’s actions anciently down through His present activity in Yahshua the Messiah. This was also the conviction of the early New Testament Assembly.

This publication is sent free of charge, made possible through the tithes and offerings of those who desire to see the truth of Scripture restored in our day. © 2018 Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry

Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry PO Box 463 Holts Summit, MO 65043 Telephone: 573-896-1000 Office hours M-F 8am-4pm

www.yrm.org info@yrm.org

Spiritual

Renewal at Passover

by Alan Mansager

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s the warm sun beckons the earth back to life at the Passover, the world is awakening from 2,000 years of spiritual slumber. Yahweh is moving in big ways. His Truth is getting noticed. Many disillusioned by empty and pointless man-made traditions and teachings are opening their eyes.

Where man’s holidays are missing from the Bible, Yahweh’s observances are commanded in detail and found throughout the Scriptures. They hold key importance for His worship both yesterday and today.

Passover is a memorial of an actual event that occurred long ago in Egypt. It was the final of 10 plagues when an angel of death passed over Egypt and convinced Pharaoh finally to release Israel from bondage.

The Old Testament Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread are shadows of greater events to occur in the New Testament.

What Yahshua did by becoming the Passover Lamb was fulfilled only in part. He

spoke of yet another fulfillment of Passover in the future kingdom. We see the magnitude of this special observance throughout history.

From ancient days to the Kingdom, the Passover is a vital key to Yahweh’s plan for His people.

The Journey Starts at Passover

Looking back in history we see that Yahweh began recalling His people at the Passover, ultimately to take them out of the Egypt of sin and unto Himself. He is recalling His people today through the same avenue of Passover for the same reason.

Passover signifies a release from sin. It starts the renewal of right worship.

It is an annual reminder for all who would be His elect not to love the sin of this world or it will enslave us, just as Israel was enslaved in Egypt because they had repeatedly refused to obey their Heavenly Father. Passover offered a chance to rededicate their lives to Him, to turn back again in humble sincerity.

To deny Passover is to say, “I love the

Egypt of the world more.” The results are the same as with any Israelite who refused this observance.

We find an incident in Numbers 9 where men became unclean because of a dead body. Their problem was that they could not take the Passover, vv. 3-12. This is the only moed that you could keep a month later if unclean or on a journey.

Now read verse 13: “But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of Yahweh in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin.”

Humbling Unleavening

Immediately after the Passover is the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Exodus 12:19-20 is a warning against anyone who would not take the Feast of Unleavened Bread seriously as well. “Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.”

Deliberately avoid the Passover and Yahweh will cut you off. Knowingly eat leavening during the Feast of Unleavened Bread and you’ll face the same fate.

The beginning of the year is the spiritually pivotal time to rededicate our lives to the Father as we recount the sacrifice of the Son and remove leaven from our lives in the seven-day Feast that follows Passover.

Nothing in life is more important than serving Yahweh in every way He commands.

If we don’t please Him, what’s the point of this brief life on earth? Without Him it all ends here.

Take a survey today and ask, “What is leavening?”

Probably no more than 25 percent of the population would answer correctly. More women than men would likely know, by virtue of their experience with recipes and baking.

Most of those would probably answer yeast. But yeast is only one substance that we must refrain from consuming during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Leaven is seor and means, “to swell up, that which causes swelling by fermentation.”

Other leavening agents include baking powder and baking soda. Any substance that causes a puffing up of a cereal grain in reaction with another chemical could be classified as leavening.

Leavening in the Scriptures symbolizes hypocrisy, false teachings, and wickedness.

All are connected with sin. When leaven is removed, the evils that leaven represents are symbolically removed from the heart as well.

Each time we participate in the Passover and Feast that follows, we undergo a spiritual renewal with Yahweh. That is one reason these days are referred to as Yahweh’s. They honor Him. And they are central to the redemption of His people as we observe them, Hebrews 9:13-14.

His people are called peculiar in Titus 2:14. Peculiar is the Greek periousios and means, “of one’s own possession.” This verse is speaking directly of Yahshua’s sacrifice at Passover to make a people for Himself. If you are not seen as “peculiar” by the world around you, then you need to

reassess your walk with Yahshua. Yahweh’s people should be a light of righteousness to others. The further this world sinks into darkness, the more your light must shine.

The insidious, moral collapse occurring everywhere is the action of leavening. It permeates and works slowly and stealthily to induce a change. Spiritually, it spells corruption of the heart.

A True Heart Change

Grade school science teaches about various changes to substances. The simplest are physical changes like water into ice or steam.

A physical change leaves the molecular makeup of a substance unaltered.

It is a testimony to Yahweh’s power that during the 1960s, a time of spiritual decay, that Yahweh was calling us and others to begin a restoration of the truth of His Name and Sabbaths.

It was during this time of widespread moral decline and rebellion that Yahweh was raising up a people who would stand in the gap for His truth in these last days and challenge the errors of thousands of years, as well as the perversities of a culture.

Today we see a generation wandering through life with no other purpose than satisfying self, a generation without natural affection, without the milk of human kindness and love for neighbor. All those things help make life rich and satisfying and worth the living.

We are a generation that does not know the Father or Son, who is poised with sword in hand, about to cut the chaff from the wheat.

Our society is defined in Romans 1:28. “And even as they did not like to retain Elohim in their knowledge, Elohim gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient.”

When Yahshua returns, will He find the faith on the earth? That is the question Yahshua Himself posed in Luke 18:8.

Yahweh shows us the way to walk. The masses want anything but that way of Truth.

The Passover was a night when Yahweh executed judgment on the false religion of Egypt, and hence the false religions of the world. Lest we think that this is just an ancient judgment on ancient people, think again.

Yahweh punished even believers in the New Testament with sickness and death for observing Passover carelessly. Why? Because this is a day about heart change.

Paul wrote in 1Corinthians 11:27-31, “Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Master, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Master. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the Master’s body.

For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.”

Increasing numbers of Bible believers are searching for fundamental truths that have been missing or neglected for centuries.

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Chemical changes, however, change the very nature of the substance. Leavening induces a chemical change that parallels the spiritual change of the heart.

Another purpose for observing the Feast of Unleavened Bread is to make us aware that there are influences that can change us if we are not careful. To be clueless about spiritual leaven is to be unaware of the Satanic influences that can destroy us spiritually.

To be constantly exposed to the leaven of hypocrisy, false teachings, and wickedness of the world will eventually produce a negative spiritual impact in a person not unlike the chemical change brought on by the influence of leavening.

You cannot be constantly bombarded by trash day in and day out and not be influenced by it, get some of it on you, and even come to expect that as normal. That is what happened to Israel in Egypt. They had to be retaught Yahweh’s laws through Moses.

EliYah Message Emerges

We are doing our own reteaching of Yahweh’s standards because churchianity dropped the ball 2,000 years ago.

Significant lessons about Yahweh’s plan and your life can be found in the commanded spring Passover and Feast. The world passes over and ignores Yahweh’s appointed times, but Yahweh isn’t calling the world. He is looking for those who will dedicate to the teachings of His Word.

Hearts of Children Returning to Truth

Increasing numbers of Bible believers are searching for fundamental truths that have been missing or neglected for centuries.

Many sense a void in today’s teachings when the fundamentals of the Scriptures are tossed aside in favor of trivial pursuits.

Yahshua the Messiah showed by word and action what a True Believer is all about, yet the core of what He came to reveal continues untaught in our day.

A spiritual reawakening to the truth of the Scriptures is underway exactly as was prophesied for our time in Acts 3:19-21: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of Yahweh. And he shall send Yahshua Messiah, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which Elohim hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”

There it is. There will be a return to sound Bible truth in the days before the appearance of the Messiah. It will be far more than an emotional response to miracles and acts of wonder, healings, and unexplained phenomena. It will be the core essence of what Yahshua taught.

The hearts of the children are returning to the fathers. More are awakening to the fact that original teachings of Yahweh given to Israel were never abolished.

On the contrary, they form the basis of the beliefs and practices of True Worshipers today. Key to the foundation of what Yahshua and His apostles taught and practiced are the annual feasts.

sacrifice of Yahshua. It also begins the seven annual festal observances given to mankind by our Almighty Creator.

Not only did Yahweh bring Abram out of Egypt, Israel out of Egypt, and Yahshua’s family out of Egypt as well, but through His word He is also calling YOU out of the Egypt of this world. He is asking you to forsake the ways of the world and take up His ways and follow in the footsteps of His Pattern Son. Coming out of Egypt is a lifelong process.

The blood put on the lintels and doorposts at Passover depicts the blood Yahshua shed at His impalement to cover and pay the penalty for our sins.

As we approach the Passover memorial, we examine our hearts.

Popular is the notion that we cannot earn salvation by works, and so works are unnecessary. But unless our works are deemed worthy, we won’t be given the gift of eternal life, Luke 20:35, 2Thessalonians 1:5. So we end up shut out anyway if we refuse to obey.

Yahshua is everyone’s future judge who will determine whether the gift of everlasting life is granted or not. He said about the disobedient: “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity,” Matthew 7:23. Iniquity is a word little used today, but in the Greek means “violation of the law.”

point. It was likely the time when Sodom and Gomorrah and their sister cities were destroyed and righteous Lot and his family were led out of harm’s way into a new life.

Neither Sodom nor the Pharaoh of Egypt could interfere with Yahweh’s plan for His people.

The Passover season is the spiritual renewal point in the redemption of spiritual Israel as we walk with Yahweh as well. Just as the foliage brings forth fruit in spring, we are to produce new spiritual fruit.

Abraham’s son Isaac was born to him at this time of year, a moed, Genesis 21:2.

We also accept the shed blood of the Lamb at Passover.

After Passover we keep seven days of unleavened bread as we remove the sinful influences of this world, Deuteronomy 16:3.

After partaking of the “Bread of Life,” we feed for seven days on a special bread of sincerity and truth, learning of Him and walking in His ways.

The Feast of Tabernacles in the fall of the year is the time for the ingathering of fruit and it symbolizes the coming Millennial Kingdom as Yahshua rules with a rod of iron, Revelation 2:26-27.

We take a token amount of the fruit of the vine, and a token amount of unleavened bread as a memorial of the Savior’s shed blood and broken body. By doing so we accept all that Yahshua did and all He taught.

We commune with Him. Then during the seven days of Unleavened Bread, we examine our teachings and beliefs, making certain all are based on the Bible and not on doctrines of man.

The first two appointed observances are like a spiritual spring housecleaning. Just as we don’t clean ourselves up just to return to trample in the mud, neither can we partake of the emblems of the Savior’s death just to go back to sinful ways.

Unleavened Bread reminds us to check everything we eat to make certain it is proper food for the remnant of Israel.

The spiritual lesson is clear. In a spiritual sense we do the same. We are to confirm that what we believe is not leavened with “hypocrisy, wrong teaching, and worldliness.”

If you have not kept the Passover and days of Unleavened Bread, we urge you to

Passover is the flagship observance that connects us directly to salvation through the sacrifice of Yahshua.

Passover: Avenue to Salvation

Knowledgeable students of Scripture know that Passover was not just a single event that happened in ancient Egypt. It was foretold and foreordained long before that incident

by Yahweh Himself.

Passover is the flagship observance that connects us directly to salvation through the

The Apostle Paul was explicit in 1Corinthians 6:9-10: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of Yahweh? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of Yahweh.”

As the greening earth returns to life at Passover, we focus on spiritual life through this observance. Passover is the turning

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seek Yahweh’s truth seriously and do all it commands. Start calling on Yahshua’s Name, the only name in Scripture that promises salvation: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Yahweh is moving to establish a dedicated body of believers in these final days. He is calling select ones out of the world to keep the observances that He

ordained. These days will be taught, kept, and administered worldwide in the Millennial Kingdom, Ezekiel 45:21-25; Zechariah 14:16-18; Hosea 12:9.

His Feasts were never just for Jews.

Neither were they abolished, but are for everyone who will follow Yahweh as their true Heavenly Father. No other annual celebrations are found in the Scripture.

Single-day, man-made holidays like Christmas and Easter have no sanction

10 Key Passover Facts

1) The word “Passover” derives from the primitive root pacach and means to “to hop, i.e. skip over,” which the death angel did for the faithful Israelites when it came to the death of the firstborn.

2) The Passover is to be observed at even, literally, between sunset and complete darkness, Exodus 12:6 (RSB note).

3) The Passover marked the redemption of Yahweh’s chosen people in both the Old and New Testaments.

4) The first Passover was a family observance that would evolve into a communal event, Exodus 12:3; Deuteronomy 16:2; 2Chronicles 35:4-7.

5) While leavening is not prohibited on Passover day, Abib 14, it is disallowed with the Passover memorial, Exodus 12:8. The Passover is a time of removing leavening in preparation for the Feast of Unleavened Bread that follows.

6) Unlike church communion, the Passover is observed once a year.

7) The Old Testament Passover required all participants to be physically circumcised, Exodus 12:44. Today this is fulfilled through baptism into Yahshua’s Name, Colossians 2:11-13.

8) The Passover is the one commanded observance not considered a high day or annual Sabbath but a memorial, Leviticus 23.

9) The Passover is the only appointed time with a prescribed second observance, which is limited to those who missed the first observance because of uncleanness or away on a long journey, Numbers 9:10-11.

10) Those immersed into Yahshua’s Name who neglect to observe the Passover are cut off from Yahweh’s people, Numbers 9:13.

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in the Scriptures. You cannot find them anywhere in Yahweh’s Word. They are purely inventions of the Roman Church as a substitute for Yahweh’s days like Passover and Tabernacles. The church readily admits that they contrived these observances.

It is nothing short of staggering to contemplate that anyone can elect now to do exactly as the Savior did in keeping these special days as directed by His own Father.

You can and must observe the weekly and annual Sabbaths now, learning what to do and when to do them, as you enjoy a closer walk now with your Savior.

The annual observances are so basic to Yahweh’s plan that it is anticipated He will return Yahshua to earth at the time of one of His sacred appointments – at the sound of the trumpet, 1Thessalonians 4:16.

Once here, Yahshua as ruling monarch will teach these days to people of the earth for a thousand years in His Kingdom.

Train now to be a part of the Kingdom reign Yahshua will establish. Prepare to be a priest of the Most High, showing others the same teachings that will be taught in the Kingdom (Rev. 5:10; 20:6). Those who object will be forced to keep these days in the Kingdom or suffer severe penalties.

Resistance is futile. It will only turn out badly.

Obey your Creator in keeping the days that Israel and your Savior kept in preparing for His glorious world to come.

Understand

the Kingdom Biblical Feasts booklet, you InwillThelearnAmazing about the new world order coming soon under the rule of Yahshua the Messiah.

Yahweh’s Biblical Feasts give key insight into the purpose, qualifications and timeline for the Kingdom as Yahshua the Messiah defeats the Adversary and establishes a paradise where sin will be no more.

Now is the time to begin keeping His Feasts. Request the booklet by postal mail or read at yrm.org/amazingbiblical-feasts

Did the Apostles Eat

Jelly Beans?

by Alan Mansager

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hy is it that we humans are determined to change historical truths? Take the second most popular holiday in Christendom. If you could have asked any of the disciples in the year 45 CE where they were going to celebrate Easter that year, their expressions of utter shock would have been mortifying.

Peter would likely have responded, “Do you mean the abomination of Ishtar, the pagan queen of heaven?”

At the time the Savior walked this earth, and for a couple of centuries afterward, there was no Old or New Testament observance even resembling today’s Easter. But its mold had been cast by the pagan Assyrians and Babylonians many centuries before.

The ONLY place in the King James Version where the word Easter appears is in Acts 12:4, and no one knows how it got there. The word in the Greek is pascha, derived from the Hebrew pesach or Passover.

The error is corrected in modern translations to read “Passover.” See Acts

12:4 in the following, all of which read “Passover”: New International Version, The Jerusalem Bible, New American Standard Bible, The New King James Bible, Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard, The New English Bible, James Moffatt, Modern Language Bible, Webster Bible, Amplified New Testament, Douay-Rheims, King James Newberry Reference Bible.

If the original observance was none other than Passover, and today’s Easter was foreign to the New Testament, then where did Easter get its Christian credentials?

How do colored eggs and Peter Cottontail sitting in a nest of green cellophane grass fit into the resurrection of the Savior?

Imagine honoring the solemnity of Memorial Day by decorating pogo sticks. It is just as much an absurdity to observe the resurrection of the Savior with chocolates and rabbits that lay colored eggs.

Changing Times and Laws “Although Easter is a Christian festival, it embodies traditions of an ancient time

antedating the rise of Christianity,” so says the Funk and Wagnalls Standard Reference Encyclopedia. This source goes on to describe Eastre, the Teutonic goddess of spring and fertility, to whom was dedicated “Eastre monath,” corresponding to April: “Her festival was celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox, and traditions associated with the festival survive in the familiar Easter bunny, symbol of the fertile rabbit, and in the equally familiar colored Easter eggs originally painted with gay hues to represent the sunlight of spring” (“Easter,” Ibid, p. 2940).

Religious observances based on human tradition are mostly heathen in origin. It’s no different with Easter: “As at Christmas, so also at Easter, popular customs reflect many ancient pagan survivals – in this instance, connected with spring fertility rites, such as the symbols of the Easter egg and the Easter hare or rabbit,” Encyclopaedia Britannica, p. 60.

In its quest to attract the heathen, the early church accommodated many pagan Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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observances. In an attempt to justify its timing, the church set the Easter date by the full moon, about when Passover falls, but yet used the vernal equinox as the pivot point, rather than going by the first month of green barley ears that Scripture calls Abib. In doing so, the church wanted to avoid having Easter fall on the same date as the biblical Passover.

The following excerpts illustrate this (from The New Shaff-Herzog Religious Encyclopedia, “Easter,” pp. 43-44):

“That the Jewish Christians continued to keep the Jewish festivals is altogether probable, if not certain, from Paul’s habit...

So far then it would appear that the pascha observance was a time of grief and it is left uncertain whether the resurrection was observed annually by a special day, or, if observed at all, whether it was observed separately from the festival of the death of Christ.

“Eusebius further says that the churches in Asia Minor derived their custom of observing the pascha from the Apostle John and Philip. Without doubt Christian elements were [later] incorporated into the celebration.

“Certainly in the fourth century the term pascha stood for both the resurrection and the death of [Messiah]. It was then called ‘the holy feast, the pascha of our salvation’ by the Council of Antioch 341.

“Finally, in the fourth century pascha came to be used in a limited sense for Easter Sunday alone...”

One motive for the switch was antiJewish bias. Passover was erroneously considered only “Jewish,” even though Scripture calls it “Yahweh’s Passover,” Exodus 12:11, Leviticus 23:5. Never- mind that Yahshua, Paul, and the other apostles kept the Feasts in the New Testament, including the memorial of the Passover on which Yahshua died (see yrm.org/ passover-vs-easter).

Easter is simply a man-made observance with no biblical precedent, command or authority.

The following, eye-opening statement is from the Encyclopaedia Britannica (Macropedia, vol. 4, p. 601): “Unlike the cycle of feasts and fasts of the Jewish Law, the Christian year has never been based upon a divine revelation.

It is rather a tradition that is always subject to change by ecclesiastical law.”

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This fact begs the question: if the only purpose in celebrating the popular church holidays is to satisfy traditions of men and not the Bible, is it not troubling to see them used to replace the feasts that are specifically commanded by Almighty Yahweh Himself?

Passover is commanded in commemoration of Yahshua’s death. Scripture clearly shows that the proper memorial of the resurrection is in the solemn act of baptism. See Romans 6:3-5; Galatians 3:27; Colossians 2:12; and IPeter 3:21.

No special yearly celebration of the resurrection exists in Scripture.

Solar Survivals The name Easter does not mean or even imply “resurrection.” It is an Anglo-Saxon word from the name of an old Teutonic goddess of spring and sex worship. In Chaldea this heathen deity was Astarte, one of the titles of Beltis, the queen of heaven. In Babylon she was Ishtar

The Teutonic goddess Ishtar, after whom the celebration of Easter is named, is seen in both of these images. She was worshiped as the mighty one of spring and fertility and her day was celebrated on the vernal eqinox. In Sumeria she was known by the name Inanna. Seen here she is depicted resting her foot on the back of a lion while being paid obeisance, c. 2334-2154 BCE.

(pronounced “Aestar”).

The celebration anciently honored this queen of heaven and the fertility and procreation she represented, for which springtime, rabbits, and eggs were symbols.

An old tradition prominent in the Easter celebration is the Easter Sunrise worship service. The rationale for it is that Yahshua rose Easter Sunday morning. That is false.

Clearly, He was already risen by sunset Saturday night, according to Matthew 28.

(See our booklet, Easter, the Fertility of It All, available by mail or online at: yrm.org/ easter-the-fertility-of-it-all).

The real origin of the sunrise service traces to sun worship. It was even practiced by people professing Yahweh, behavior He strongly condemned. In Ezekiel 8:16 the prophet is shown this abomination taking place right on the steps of the Temple.

“And he brought me into the inner court of Yahweh’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of Yahweh, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of Yahweh, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man?

Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the

Origin of the Easter Egg and Hot-cross Bun from The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop, pp. 108-109

“I

land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose.”

This abominable practice at sunrise is still carried out through Easter sunrise services today. It is nothing less than reviving ancient sun worship. “Learn not the way of the heathen,” Yahweh thunders.

Lent Borrowed from Babylon

Neither Yahshua nor His disciples observed Lent, and nothing is said about it in the Bible. Yet millions today do so, thinking it is scriptural.

The 40-day fast of Lent traces directly to the worship of the Babylonian goddess Semiramis (a.k.a. Ishtar, Easter). This pagan observance was a “preliminary to the great annual festival in commemoration of the death and resurrection of Tammuz,” her son and sun-god, The Two Babylons, p. 105.

Weeping over the death of Tammuz marked this celebration, from which comes the practice of fasting or giving up something bad or harmful in anticipation of the hoped-for resurrection. (If it is unwanted enough to give up for Lent, why is it okay the rest of the year?)

In The Two Babylons, Alexander Hislop reveals the link between Lent and the fast in paganism:

n ancient times eggs were used in the religious rites of the Egyptians and the Greeks, and were hung up for mystic purposes in their temples. From Egypt these sacred eggs can be distinctly traced to the banks of the Euphrates…

An egg of wondrous size is said to have fallen from heaven into the river Euphrates. The fishes rolled it to the bank, where the doves having settled upon it, and hatched it, out came Venus, who afterwards was called the Syrian Goddess – that is, Astarte.

The ‘buns,’ known too by that identical name, were used in the worship of the queen of heaven, the goddess

Easter, as early as the days of Cecrops, the founder of Athens – that is, 1500 years before the Christian era. One species of sacred bread… which used to be offered to the gods, was of great antiquity, and called Boun…The prophet Jeremiah takes notice of this kind of offering when he says, ‘The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven.’

The hot cross buns are not now offered, but eaten, on the festival of Astarte; but this leaves no doubt as to whence they have been derived. …The ancient Druids bore an egg, as the sacred emblem of their order.”

“To conciliate the Pagans to nominal Christianity, Rome, pursuing its usual policy, took measures to get the Christian and Pagan festivals amalgamated, and, by a complicated but skilful adjustment of the calendar, it was found no difficult matter, in general, to get Paganism and Christianity—now far sunk in idolatry—in this as in so many other things, to shake hands… Let any one only read the atrocities that were commemorated during the sacred fast or Pagan Lent, as described by Arnobius and Clemens Alexandrinus, and surely he must blush for the Christianity of those who, with the full knowledge of all these abominations… should ever think of introducing the Pagan abstinence of Lent was a sign of evil; it showed how low they had sunk…” p. 105.

which shall devour the adversaries,” Hebrew 10:26-27.

Giving up the false worship traditions of the world may not be easy.

Yahshua forewarned that it would be difficult to follow the Truth. We will face persecution from the unenlightened.

Family and friends may push back, which for many is the most difficult obstacle. Family and friends are not the ones who will reward your faithfulness with everlasting life, however.

Leaving worldly ways and worship and replacing them with Yahweh’s commands is the singular path to the Kingdom. We read in the final book of Scripture: “And he that overcomes and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations,” Revelation 2:26.

Yahweh has laid out the roadmap.

Yahshua followed it in honor of His Father. Are you doing the same?

It’s Your Decision

How can someone be a True Worshiper and indulge in practices firmly grounded in ancient mystery worship? Yahweh calls such things ABOMINATIONS. Once we know and understand the truth we must make the decision to follow it. “If we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation,

Want to Know More?

Learn how and why the church morphed Passover into Easter.

Read how the church candidly admits to the pagan practices of Easter–and much more. Request or read online the booklet, Easter, the Fertility of it All. www.yrm.org

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The Religious

Recluse

by the late Donald R. Mansager

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any who claim to be Bible believers say they have no use for organized worship. Often this conviction is born of an unhappy church experience. Regardless, being a separatist from worship is not Yahweh’s way or His desire.

The Bible warns, “Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another– and all the more as you see the Day approaching,’’ Hebrews 10:25, NIV. Even ancient Israel was commanded to meet in “holy convocation” – that is, in a set-apart calling together of His people, Leviticus 23:3.

Structured Worship Necessary

Israel had the Temple and priesthood to guide and keep them in the way of righteousness. The laws of offerings, sacrifices, and washings were part of that system.

That Levitical priesthood is now in abeyance. Today under the Melchizedek priesthood of Yahshua our worship takes on a deeper, more spiritual quality as we are guided by Yahweh’s Holy Spirit. But True Worship involves interaction with others of like faith even more.

Today our sacrifices are the praise of our lips, Hebrews 13:15. We also sacrifice of ourselves to be present in worship as obedient and living examples of faith to Him, Romans 12:1.

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For those who think going it alone is the way to go, think again.

To help the saints overcome the world, our flesh, and the Adversary, Paul tells us that when Yahshua ascended to the Heavenly Father, the Holy Spirit was poured out and He gave gifts to mankind.

Ephesians 4:8. These gifts were the abiding of the Holy Spirit within, empowering qualified men, chosen by Yahweh, to become the guides and leaders of the assembly.

Paul explains, “It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare [Yahweh’s] people for works of service, so that the body of [Messiah] may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of Elohim and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of [Messiah],” Ephesians 4:11 -13, NIV. After the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE the followers of the Bible no longer had a central place to worship. Instead, Yahweh had sent His Spirit to this earth at Pentecost in 31 CE His Holy Spirit does not dwell within the Holy of Holies in the Temple at Jerusalem. Rather, after the ascension of the Messiah His Spirit came to earth to indwell repentant believers.

This is the promise Yahshua gave to the Apostles and to us in John 14:16-17.

The Holy Spirit is to be with us forever (verse 16) and dwell with those who are called (verse 17). The Spirit is implanted within the believer who answers Yahweh’s

call and is baptized into Yahshua’s Name and the laying on of hands, Acts 2:38.

Those called and chosen are expected to be faithful unto the end, Revelation 2:10, keeping their bodies a fit place in which the Holy Spirit can reside.

Paul put it this way, “Know you not that you are the temple of Elohim and that the Spirit of Elohim dwells in you?”

1Corinthians 3:16. Paul adds that the body of Messiah is “built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, Yahshua the Messiah Himself being the chief cornerstone, in Whom all the building fitly framed together grows unto an holy temple in Yahshua: in Whom you also are builded together for an habitation of Elohim through the Spirit,” Ephesians 2:20-22.

Believers Make a Spiritual Temple

Paul reveals that the assembly of gathered believers is now the spiritual temple wherein Yahweh’s Spirit dwells. “But each man has his own gift from Elohim: one has this gift, another has that,” 1Corinthians 7:7, NIV. That is to say, each member of the Body of Messiah is given a special gift to complement and function as part of that body. “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same spirit,” 1Corinthians 12:4.

All believers have been immersed into one body no matter what nationality, origin, sex or where we reside, 1Corinthians 12:13.

Yahweh has given each believer a function to perform in the Body of Messiah.

In His wisdom, however, Yahweh

has gone a step further. To help guide the body of believers, Yahweh has set leaders in the Assembly. These include Apostles, prophets, teachers, workers of miracles, healings, helps, governments, and diversities of languages, verse 28.

Paul repeats the establishing of spiritual guides to the Assembly in Ephesians 4:1113. He alludes to Yahshua as being the One who had ascended to the heavens, after which at Pentecost the Holy Spirit was sent to this earth.

The Apostles were given special power or gifts of the Spirit to be used to build and edify the Assembly, verses 7-8.

These are the offices of Apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher, to prepare Yahweh’s people for works of service as they continue their growth unto spiritual maturity, verse 12.

Whenever reference is made to the Body of Messiah or the Assembly it is always as a unified and cooperative body. It is not a rogue band of individuals all going separate directions. The Body of Messiah is likened to a human body, all members working together for the common good of the body, all striving for a goal of spiritual perfection.

While each may have a different function, according to Romans 12:4-8, the whole Body is closely joined and knit together through contact with the Source of life, Yahshua, from whom we derive the ability to grow.

Not all will have the same task to perform, nor will we all have the same position. Our desire is to take whatever talents and abilities Yahweh has bestowed upon us and use His gifts for His honor and glory by being an active member of that collective body. We are to help and encourage those brethren who are also striving to overcome, and be a compelling force in the world as well.

Each One Has a Role

First, we individually assume our responsibility of obedience to Him as we daily walk in the good works He has previously prepared for us, Ephesians 2:10. We are to pattern our lives after the righteousness of the Savior. Second, we are to collectively show our love for the brethren, esteeming others better than ourselves, Philippians 2:3-4. In humility we are to serve one another and be an

example to those around us.

It is difficult to see how one can consider oneself a follower of Yahshua, alleging to be a part of the Body of Messiah, and yet keep aloof from others striving to be a part of that same spiritual family of True Believers.

The relationship and loving concern each fellow believer has for the others is to be a sign to the world that this is the assembly that wholeheartedly is living the commandment given by Yahshua, “You love one another as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this shall .all men know that you are my disciples if you have love one to another,” John 13:34-35.

As our society continues to deteriorate and love of many grows cold, precious few can honestly say they strive to live by every Word of Yahweh, Luke 4:4.

Those who adhere to the Savior’s words of Matthew 4:4 to live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh are to be commended. This should be the goal of every one of us. But does everyone who alleges that he lives by the Bible sincerely do so?

We must make the Bible a part of our very nature so that we live His precepts automatically, making His words come to life as we put them into practice daily.

Truths We Learned

Many of us came out of nominal worship when we learned that the Sabbath was the seventh day, not the first. We discovered that the Sabbath will yet be observed in the Kingdom and is a sign between Yahweh and His people now, Ezekiel 20:12.

We found that the first “day” of the week is mentioned only eight times in the New Testament, and did not necessarily refer either to Sunday or to a gathering for worship.

The word Sabbath is found 60 times in the New Testament. It was clearly the day of worship for Yahshua and His disciples.

We could find no place where the Sabbath was set aside and no command to replace it with the first day of the week, nor is there even a suggestion that it has displaced the Saturday Sabbath. Convicted of this truth alone, we had to leave Sundaykeeping churches.

Then came the Feast days. We discovered as we studied Leviticus 23 that the Feast days are commanded along with

the Sabbath, so they were to be observed as well. Being defined as Yahweh’s, Leviticus 23:2, we learn from verses 14, 21, 31, and 41 that the Feasts are to be observed forever, for all time.

There are always those who want the appearance of obedience but lack the determination to live by every word of Yahweh. Some will say that because animal sacrifices were commanded on both the weekly Sabbath (Numbers 28:9-10) as well as the Feast days, that abolishing animal sacrifices also abolishes these days of obligation.

That’s like arguing that when a couple gets divorced that the institution of marriage is abolished as well! According to Exodus 12 and Leviticus 23, the Sabbath and Feast Days are for ALL time.

Having proved we are to keep Yahweh’s times (regardless of animal sacrifices), we found ourselves even more alone as we continued to walk on higher, but narrower, ground.

We may not have willingly accepted Yahweh’s Name when it was first revealed to us, nor did we immediately begin calling upon the majestic Name Yahweh. After diligent search and inquiry, however, we proved it to ourselves and were impressed with the great importance Yahweh places on invoking His Name.

Trials Strengthen Our Resolve

At times we feel all alone. Perhaps we understand in a measure how earlier believers felt as they were driven from their homes in the middle of the night and persecuted by religious groups. Foxe’s Book of Martyrs is an excellent treatise on the price paid by many who clung to the Bible as their guide. We have “not resisted unto blood” as did some of those martyrs, but we may at times feel ostracized and shunned by society as a whole because we keep the weekly and annual holy days and call upon our Creator by His exalted Name Yahweh, which He so lovingly showed to us.

Almost daily we become involved in situations that test our resolve and faith, and yet these experiences build character and perseverance. Often we have no one in our locality who believes as we do and with whom we can share our trials and engender support. At those times we need to go to (please turn to p. 19) Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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Discovering the Real Temple Mount, Pt. 2

by Randy Folliard

While some may interpret the contents and conclusions of this article as anti-Semitic, this could not be further from the truth. Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry supports the nation of Israel and believes that the entire nation of Israel, including the traditional Temple Mount area, forthrightly belongs to the Jewish people. This article is only interested in the truth and how the facts impact prophecy.

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n this second installment on Discovering the Real Temple Mount we will focus on several critical aspects providing important clues as to where the temple originally stood, including biblical prophecies and historical accounts of the destruction of Herod’s temple and Jerusalem.

We will also examine evidence for Fortress Antonia and the Roman Tenth Legion. However, before we begin our expedition of truth, here is a summary from part one: • The ancient City of David, today a national archaeology site, is located south of the traditional Temple Mount and is synonymous with Zion, 2Samuel 5:7; 1Chronicles 11:5; Psalm 76:2.

• Solomon expanded the ancient City of David by filling in the Millo and connecting the City of David with the Ophel, the biblical location for the temple, 1Kings 11:27. The Ophel, Mount Zion, and Mount Moriah are all synonymous, 2Chronicles 3:1.

• Solomon’s Temple was built over the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, 1Chronicles 21:15-30. A threshing floor requires a flat and hard surface. The rock underneath the Dome of the Rock does not meet these requirements and therefore likely not the location of Ornan’s threshing floor.

• During the 7th Century CE, 70 Jewish families from Tiberius relocated to Jerusalem and requested to be near the Pool of Siloam and the Temple.

• The Gihon Spring is the only natural spring and major water source in Jerusalem.

It’s located within the City of David, a third of a mile from the traditional Temple Mount.

• According to Aristeas (Alexandrian Jew, 2nd / 3rd century BCE) and Tacitus (Roman historian, 2nd century CE) there was a spring-like reservoir gushing from the Temple precincts.

For additional information on the above summary, see part one of this article in the November-December 2017 Restoration Times.

Not One Stone Left on Another

Let’s begin our journey by considering one of the most important prophecies Yahshua the Messiah gave in the New Testament.

“And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here! And Yahshua answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there

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shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down,” Mark 13:1-2.

Mark 13, along with Matthew 24 and Luke 21, is known as the Olivet Prophecy.

This passage begins with the disciples admiring the stonework of the temple.

Yahshua responded by saying that these great buildings would be totally demolished with not one stone standing on another.

It’s important to realize that Yahshua used the word “buildings.” Many who believe that the temple was located on the

to around 18 CE, 20 years after King Herod.

Based on this, this wall was likely not built

by King Herod, but by Agrippa II, Herod’s great-grandson.

Returning to the topic at hand, when Yahshua gave this prophecy, Mark 13 records that He and the disciples were on the Mount of Olives looking back to the temple.

From this location, He would have viewed not only the inner sanctuary of the temple, but the entire temple precincts.

With this in mind, along with the fact

the ancient temple and this wall belongs to something else entirely.

Antiquity Supports Destruction

In addition to Yahshua’s prophecy, there is also evidence from antiquity to the destruction of the temple. Both Jewish and Christian sources confirm similar ruin of the temple. In fact, not only do they validate what Yahshua stated, but do so in a manner that verifies it was not only the inner sanctuary, but the entire platform, including

The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem - by David Roberts (1850).

traditional Temple Mount will contend that Yahshua was referring only to the inner sanctuary and not to the entire temple complex. They do this to explain the remaining western wall, also known as the Wailing Wall.

This wall is the holiest site in Judaism.

It’s believed that this wall was part of the outer western wall of Herod’s Temple.

On a side note, there’s debate as to whether this wall was even built by Herod.

Eli Shukron, an archaeologist with the Israeli Antiquities Authority, found a coin at the base of the Wailing Wall dating back

that He uses the word “buildings,” it seems unlikely that he was referring only to the inner sanctuary. It is far more probable that He was referring to the entire temple platform.

If He meant the entire precincts, this would most certainly have included the outer western wall. And remember, He stated that not one stone would remain upon another.

Based on this prophecy and the known facts, how is it possible that the Wailing Wall remains today? There is no good explanation. Either Yahshua exaggerated or the Temple Mount is not the location of

the outer walls that would be torn down.

One of the most well-known accounts is from Flavius Josephus. Josephus lived between 37 and 100 CE and is one of the most renowned scholars and historians of the first century. He lived before and after the temple was destroyed. Therefore, this man provides invaluable firsthand testimony of this destruction.

Josephus in War of the Jews recounts, “I cannot but wish that we had all died before we had seen that holy city demolished by the hands of our enemies, or the foundations of our Holy Temple dug up, after so profane a Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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manner” (Book VII, ch.8).

The reference to “profane” here verifies that the Romans had no reverence for the temple. Even more importantly, Josephus states the foundation stones themselves were dug up and removed. Based on this, it’s hard to believe that Rome would have allowed the foundation stones of the current Temple Mount and the Wailing Wall to remain. Their goal was to remove Jewish worship in all of its manifestations.

Evidence for the destruction of the entire temple platform is also found from Epiphanius of Salamis, a fourth century bishop in Cyprus. In his work, On Weights and Measures, he testifies to this destruction.

“It was the second year of his reign when he [Hadrian] went up to Jerusalem, the famous and much-praised city which had been destroyed by Titus the son of Vespasian. He found it utterly destroyed and God’s Holy Temple a ruin, there being nothing where the city had stood but a few dwellings and one small church,” pp. 17-18.

Epiphanius records the eyewitness account of Emperor Hadrian. He states that Hadrian visited Jerusalem two years into his reign, approximately 119 CE. When he arrived, he was amazed at the devastation the city suffered under the Roman General Titus.

He confirms that the temple was in ruins and that Jerusalem was utterly demolished.

Except for a few buildings and a small church, nothing remained. Considering this, is it reasonable to believe that Titus would have allowed the foundations of the temple mount along with a large portion of the western wall to remain? This is highly inconsistent and unlikely.

Another man who provides insight into the temple’s destruction is Eusebius of Caesarea. Eusebius lived during the fourth century and was a historian, scholar, and bishop of Caesarea Maritima. He is one of the most well-known historians of the early church.

In his work, Proof of the Gospel, he states, “Mount Sion was burned and left utterly desolate, and the Mount of the House of God became as a grove of the wood. If our own observation has any value, we have seen in our own time Sion once so famous ploughed with yokes of oxen by the Romans and utterly devastated, and Jerusalem as the oracle says, deserted like a lodge” (Book VI, ch.13, sect. 273).

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Eusebius states that Yahweh’s House, meaning the temple, had become as a grove of woods, i.e., empty or without presence.

He goes on to lament how such a place could have been so devastated that it was reduced to a plot of farmland dirt where the oxen ploughed.

Considering this description from Eusebius, is it realistic to believe that the foundation stones along with the western wall of the current Temple Mount was intact after the invasion of the Roman army? As we see from Josephus and Epiphanius, such a conclusion is nearly impossible to draw.

Later Eusebius would write, “The hill called Sion and Jerusalem, the buildings there, the Temple, the Holy of Holies, the Altar, and whatever else there was dedicated to the glory of God, [has] been utterly removed or shaken, in fulfillment of the Word” (Ibid., Book VIII, ch.3, sect. 405).

It’s probably safe to assume that Eusebius was referring to more than the inner sanctuary but to the entire temple complex, including the outer walls.

There’s one more account from Eusebius that we will consider. In Proof of the Gospel he astoundingly states, “Their ancient holy place, at any rate, and their Temple are to this day as much destroyed as Sodom” (Book V, ch.23, sect. 250).

Eusebius compares the destruction of the temple to the devastation that Sodom suffered in the Old Testament. During our last trip to Israel we had the chance to visit what many believe is the ancient city of Gomorrah. As the Word says, Gomorrah suffered the same fate as Sodom

Nothing remains of the ancient city of Gomorrah. What was once a bustling city has been reduced to rubble. Except for ash and a few remaining sulfur balls, Gomorrah today is a wasteland.

Assuming that Eusebius was not exaggerating, is it possible that the Roman army left the foundation of the temple and Wailing Wall unscathed? Doubtful.

Jerusalem Itself Razed

In addition to the temple, Yahshua also prophesied a similar fate for the city of Jerusalem.

“As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, ‘If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace - but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build

an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another,’ Luke 19:4144, NIV. Historically, Yahshua’s prophecy of Jerusalem’s destruction was fulfilled by Titus and the Roman army. It’s amazing how history validates the Bible. Archaeology and scholarship have overwhelmingly confirmed the accuracy of Yahweh’s Word.

What Yahshua said about the temple He also says regarding Jerusalem. He prophesied that not one stone would be left upon another. We know through antiquity that Jerusalem’s destruction was so great that the city was hardly identifiable.

For instance, according to Josephus in Wars of the Jews, “And truly, the very view itself was a melancholy thing; for those places which were adorned with trees and pleasant gardens, were now become desolate country every way, and its trees were all cut down. Nor could any foreigner that had formerly seen Judaea and the most beautiful suburbs of the city, and now saw it as a desert, but lament and mourn sadly at so great a change. For the war had laid all signs of beauty quite waste. Nor if anyone that had known the place before, had come on a sudden to it now, would he have known it again?” (Book VI. ch.1).

According to Josephus, after Rome’s attack on the city of Jerusalem it was unrecognizable. This once grand city had been reduced to rubble. He describes the city as “desolate.” Astonishingly, he goes on to say that even those who were familiar with the city would not have known it after its destruction.

Knowing that the temple was the central focus in Jerusalem, how is it possible to reconcile this description with the foundation of the traditional Temple Mount and the western wall still standing?

Considering that these well-known areas were easily identifiable, and assuming Josephus was not exaggerating, how is it possible that even those who were familiar with the city before would not recognize it afterward?

Josephus also describes this destruction in Book VVI, chapter 7, “As he came to Jerusalem in his progress, and compared the melancholy condition he saw it then in, with the ancient glory of the city with the greatness of its present ruins (as well as its

ancient splendor), he could not but pity the destruction of the city ... Yet there was no small quantity of the riches that had been in that city still found among the ruins, a great deal of which the Romans dug up; but the greatest part was discovered by those who were captives, and so they [the Romans] carried it away; I mean the gold and the silver, and the rest of that most precious furniture which the Jews had, and which the owners had treasured up under ground against the uncertainties of war.”

Not only was Jerusalem completely destroyed, but much of the city was even dug up. After Jerusalem fell to the Romans, the army began looking for valuables, including gold and silver. To hide many of these valuables, Jews buried them. So not only was the city completely demolished, but they also excavated the very foundation stones, including within the temple precincts, looking for plunder.

The possibility exists that the gold veneer and gold overlays in the temple walls melted from the intense fire and ran down into the wall base, leading to the excavation of the foundation by the Romans in search

holy place for personal gain.

In addition to the Jewish historian Josephus, we also find evidence for Jerusalem’s destruction from the early church. Gregory of Nyssa, a fourth century bishop and Nicene Father, also gives an account of Jerusalem’s desolation, “Up to the time of the manifestation of Christ the royal palaces in Jerusalem were in all their splendor: there was their far-famed Temple, ... [but now] no traces even of their Temple can be recognized, and their splendid city has been left in ruins, so that there remains to the Jews nothing of the ancient institutions; while by the command of those who rule over them the very ground of Jerusalem which they so venerated is forbidden to them,” Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, vol. 5, p. 940.

The Remaining Monument

Gregory of Nyssa also writes that the temple was unrecognizable and the city was in ruins. He stated that there were no traces of the temple. We know that the Temple Mount foundation along with the Wailing Wall existed during the

Mount was from Josephus in Wars of the Jews. He states, “And where is now that great city, the metropolis of the Jewish nation, which was fortified by so many walls round about, which had so many fortresses and large towers to defend it, which could hardly contain the instruments prepared for the war, and which had so many ten thousands of men to fight for it?

Where is this city that was believed to have God himself inhabiting therein? It is now demolished to the very foundations, and hath nothing left but that monument of it preserved, I mean the camp of those that hath destroyed it” (Book 7, ch.8).

Josephus here paints a dreadful picture of the ancient city of Jerusalem. He describes how the once crown jewel of the Jewish nation had been reduced to its very foundation and how only one monument remained, “the camp of those who destroyed it.”

What “camp” is Josephus referring to that was still standing? From a historical standpoint the only possible answer is Fortress Antonia. This was the Roman camp or fort that existed during the time

Avi-Yonah’s model showing Fortress Antonia just to the right of the Temple’s courtyard. This proportionally inaccurate model could never hold upwards of 10,000 people of the Tenth Roman Legion.

of that gold.

Yahshua’s prophecy that not one stone would remain standing on another, including the foundation stones was fulfilled. How could anything substantial remain within the city or temple platform, especially considering the ornateness of the temple? It’s likely that the temple was prized for many of these Romans soldiers who desecrated the

fourth century. How is it possible that such prominent landmarks were missed?

How is it possible that no traces of the temple remained if large portions of the foundation and walls of the temple remained? The logical answer is, what we call the Temple Mount today is not the location of the temple.

We find a clue as to what the Temple

of the Messiah and after the destruction of Jerusalem. Everything else within the city was demolished.

Based on this, where do you suppose Fortress Antonia was located? The only plausible answer is the traditional Temple Mount, where the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock are located. Again, Josephus confirms that the only remaining Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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structure was the Roman fort and there is only one major structure that still exists today within the city of Jerusalem from that time period – the Temple Mount platform.

This means that the current Temple Mount along with the Wailing Wall was not part of the temple, but of Fortress Antonia.

Now before we go any further with Fortress Antonia, let’s first analyze the Roman Tenth Legion.

Rome’s Tenth Legion Stationed There

From newhistorian.com we learn about the location and history of this important military detachment: “Bricks from the bathhouse were stamped with the name of the Tenth Roman Legion, which was part of the takeover of Jewish Yerushalayim.

Its soldiers were garrisoned there until 300 CE. The Tenth Roman Legion (Legio X Fretensis) was created by Augustus Caesar between 41 and 40 BCE, specifically to fight in the civil war which marked the beginning of the end of the Republic of Rome. The tenth legion existed until at least the 410’s,” “Reminders of the Tenth Roman Legion Unearthed in Jerusalem.”

One of the most important facts is that the Roman Tenth Legion was an actual legion, named legio in Latin. We’ll see further why this is important. This source also verifies that the Tenth Legion was stationed in Jerusalem until about 300 CE and existed until the fifth century, long after Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Romans.

Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature states, “The legion appears to have originally contained about 3000 men, and to have risen gradually to twice that number, or even more. In and about the time of Christ it seems to have consisted of 6000 men, and this was exclusive of horsemen, who usually formed an additional body amounting to one tenth of the infantry” (vol. V, “Legion,” p.

329).

A typical Roman legion could have had as high as 10,000 people.

This means that the current model of Fortress Antonia as shown by scholarship could not be correct. As seen in the model of Fortress Antonia as displayed at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem (page 15), it would be impossible to fit more than a few hundred troops in it.

So how does scholarship explain this discrepancy? Many claim that the Roman Tenth Legion was not a legion, but a cohort,

Antiquities of the Jews, “Now on the north side [of the temple] was built a citadel, whose walls were square, and strong, and of extraordinary firmness. This citadel was built by the Kings of the Asamonean race, who were also High Priests, before Herod; and they called it the tower…But for the tower itself, when Herod the King of the Jews had fortified it more firmly than before, in order to secure and guard the temple, he gratified Antonius; who was his friend, and the Roman ruler; and then gave it the name of the tower of Antonia” (Book XV, ch.11).

Josephus further provides somewhat of a lengthy but crucial description of Fortress Antonia in Wars of the Jews: “Now as to the tower of Antonia, it was situated at the corner of two cloisters of the court of the Temple; of that on the west, and that on the north.

It was erected upon a rock of fifty cubits in height, and was on a great precipice. It was the work of King Herod, wherein he

or about 600 men. There are two defining factors with this: • By definition the Tenth Legion was not a cohort, but a legion, coming from the Latin Legio X Fretensis, meaning, “Tenth Legion of the Strait.”

• A typical legionary camp or fortress was the size of a city. Therefore, based on this evidence, the traditional model at the Israel Museum is likely incorrect.

demonstrated his natural magnanimity. In the first place, the rock itself was covered over with smooth pieces of stone, from its foundation, both for ornament, and that any one who would either try to get up or to go down it might not be able to hold his feet upon it. Next to this, and before you come to the edifice of the tower itself, there was a wall three cubits high; but within that wall all the space of the tower of Antonia itself was built upon, to the height of forty cubits. The inward parts had the largeness and form of a palace it being parted into all kinds of rooms and other conveniences, such as courts, and places for bathing, and broad spaces for camps; insomuch that, by having all conveniences that cities wanted, it might

A Legion Is Like a City

Now what do we know historically about the actual size of a legion and a legionary camp? French author, Yann Le Bohec, writes of the size and complexity of a typical Roman camp: “With almost 5000 men, a legionary camp was the equivalent of a town.

Consequently everything that was essential for the daily life of such a community – hospital, stores, workshops, baths, as well as public lavatories – was to be found,” The Imperial Roman Army, p. 160.

The number of soldiers doesn’t include everyone. According to some, support staff would have added several thousand more. A legionary camp would have been equivalent to an average town, including various stores, workshops, baths, and many other necessities.

As a second witness to the size of a legion, the Cyclopedia of Biblical

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Fortress Antonia

Besides the inaccuracies we have already seen, Josephus, an eyewitness to this Roman fortress, provides several important facts that modern scholarship seems to overlook.

First, note what Josephus states in

seem to be composed of several cities. By its magnificence it seemed a palace. And as the entire structure resembled that of a tower, it contained also four other distinct towers at its four corners; whereof the others were but fifty cubits high; whereas that which lay upon the southeast corner was seventy cubits high, that from thence the whole Temple might be viewed, but on the corner where it joined to the two cloisters of the Temple, it had passages down to them both, through which the guard (for there always lay in this tower a Roman legion) went several ways among the cloisters, with their arms, on the Jewish festivals, in order to watch the people, that they might not there attempt to make any innovations; for the Temple was a fortress that guarded the city, as was the tower of Antonia a guard to the Temple, and in that tower were the guards of those three. There was also a peculiar fortress belonging to the upper city, which was Herod’s palace, but for the hill Bezetha, it was divided from the tower Antonia, as we have already told you, and as that hill on which the tower of Antonia stood was the highest of these three, so did it adjoin to the new city, and was the only place that hindered the sight of the Temple

on the north” (Book 5, ch.8).

We learn a great deal from these two accounts by Josephus. As a help in understanding, following is a summary highlighting the major points: • Fortress Antonia was originally a fortress built by the Hasmoneans, i.e.,

Maccabees.

• Herod further fortified the fortress to protect the temple and gave it the name “Fortress Antonia” in honor of Mark Antony.

• The temple and Fort Antonia were connected by two cloisters, i.e., covered bridges (Wars VI, 2, 144 shows this distance

One of several camp remains of Roman Legion X Fretensis (totaling 15,00 people) from 72CE can still be seen today at the foot of Masada in Israel (above). The depictions at top and left show how the camp would have looked.

Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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as 600 feet).

• A typical Roman fortress contained all kinds of conveniences (e.g. courts, places for bathing, and broad spaces for camps), similar to an actual city.

• Fortress Antonia had four distinct towers at its four corners measuring 50 cubits (75 feet), except for the southeast corner, which measured 70 cubits (105 feet) high, from which the temple could be viewed.

• Fortress Antonia housed the Tenth Roman Legion, approximately 6,000 horsemen.

• As the temple was to guard Jerusalem, Fortress Antonia was to guard the temple.

• Fortress Antonia was located on the highest of the three hills.

• From the north, Fortress Antonia obscured or blocked the view of the temple.

There are several points here that are inconsistent with the model at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

Missing Connectors and Hills

Josephus mentions two covered walkways that connected the temple and Fortress Antonia.

No such bridges exist in the model at the Israel Museum.

Also, the description of the fort resembling a city and housing a 6,000-man army makes the current model far too small.

We also find inconsistencies with the towers. The towers depicted on the model are equal in height, while Josephus clearly states that the tower overlooking the temple was 25 additional cubits high. He also stated that the fort obscured or blocked the view of the temple coming from the north. This is certainly not depicted in the model.

Another major problem between the model and Josephus’ account is the fact that the fortress was on the third highest hill.

These last two points are critically important, as neither one is depicted by the model at the Israel Museum. However, if the temple was within the City of David on the Ophel and Fortress Antonia on the Temple Mount or the Haram Esh-Sharif, everything falls into place. When you survey the City of David, the Ophel, and the Temple Mount area, the Temple Mount area is on the third highest hill and also obscures the Ophel and the City of David coming from the north.

Roman Fortresses Built Alike

Another indication for the traditional Temple Mount being the location of Fortress Antonia

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is the fact that it shares similar dimensions with other legionary camps. The Temple Mount platform is 36 acres in size with the eastern wall measuring 1,541 feet, the southern wall measuring 918 feet, the western wall measuring 1,601 feet, and the northern wall measuring 1,033 feet. While the Temple Mount resembles a rectangle, it is in fact a trapezoid.

This shape is again similar to other Roman forts. For example, there is a Roman fortress in Caerleon, Wales, dating to 75 CE. It measures a total of 50 acres. It is believed that this particular fort housed the Second Roman Legion of approximately 5,500 men.

There is another example in Neuss, Germany, dating to 80 CE. The size is 59 acres and possibly housed the Nineteenth Roman Legion. There are remains of a Roman fort from Haltern, Germany, with a total size of 85 acres. It’s thought this fort housed two Roman legions.

As can be seen by these illustrations (pp.

16-17) the size and shape of these Roman fortresses strongly resemble the area known as the Temple Mount. Could this just be coincidence? It is highly doubtful. It is far more likely that these similarities offer additional evidence that what is assumed to be the Temple Mount platform is actually Fortress Antonia.

One fact is for certain: the model at the Israel Museum does not fit the description from Josephus or what archaeology confirms regarding a Roman fort or legionary camp.

The Paul Dilemma

A final piece of evidence for the Temple Mount being the location of Fortress Antonia comes from the 23rd chapter of Acts. “The dispute became so violent that the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them.

He ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force and bring him into the barracks…

“Then he called two of his centurions and ordered them, ‘Get ready a detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at nine tonight,’” vv. 10, 23, NIV.

From this dispute caused partially by Paul, the Romans were forced to fetch Paul from the temple to the barracks, i.e., Fortress Antonia.

Notice that the men who retrieved Paul came DOWN from the barracks to the temple. This shows that the Roman fortress was of a higher elevation than the temple and verifies Josephus’ account that Fortress Antonia was on the highest of the three hills.

We also see here that Rome provided two

hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to escort Paul from Jerusalem to Caesarea, a total of 470 men. If the Tenth Legion was just a cohort of 600 men, it means Rome used 78 percent of their military force to escort one man, leaving only 22 percent to guard the entire city of Jerusalem. This is highly improbable!

However, assuming that the Tenth Roman Legion was an actual legion consisted of 6,000 men, allocating 470 men to accompany him is feasible, especially because Paul was a Roman citizen.

Prophetic Impact

While this theory is not salvational, it may hold a crucial key to future prophecy. The Bible is clear that a third temple will be rebuilt before Yahshua’s coming.

Yahshua in Matthew 24:15 states, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:).” The phrase “holy place” is an allusion to the Holy of Holies within the temple.

Paul also describes a temple in 2Thessalonians 2:3-4: “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called Elohim, or that is worshipped; so that he as Elohim sitteth in the temple of Elohim, shewing himself that he is Elohim.”

Paul clearly states that the son of perdition or Antimessiah will sit in a temple exalting himself as elohim or as a god to be worshiped.

As a final reference, John of Patmos in Revelation 11:1-2 records, “And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of Elohim, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.” John not only confirms here a temple, but also describes the outer court.

Based on this and the two other accounts, there is little doubt that a third temple will be rebuilt prior to the return of Yahshua the Messiah.

Assuming that the temple was originally located within the City of David, as indicated by the evidence, and Jewish scholarship accepted this conclusion, it could radically change and impact future prophecy about where the next Temple will be established before Yahshua returns.

The Religious Recluse (continued from p. 11)

Yahweh in ardent prayer, believing.

If our situation is such that we are unable to worship Yahweh without the benefit of assembling with others of like faith each week, we will stand in good stead if we continue our dedication to serve Him. Conditions in our society will become increasingly difficult and even hostile toward those relying on the Bible as their guide for living and worship. We must prepare now to withstand by overcoming lesser trials.

We have yet had to resist unto blood as many of the earlier believers did, Hebrews 12:4. This is a strong possibility as we near the end, however, Revelation 6:9-11.

That is one reason we must draw on one another’s strengths through fellowship.

It is important that followers of the Messiah maintain a close relationship with one another to show the world that we are indeed brethren, a part of the family of Yahweh.

By associating with other believers we are taught by the experience, learning humility, compassion, and longsuffering as well. Through lessons gained we take on the nature of Yahshua who made Himself of no reputation.

Brethren Help Light the Way

The New Testament shows many examples where a better understanding of the Bible was gained through another believer.

Seldom did anyone receive a new revelation from on High all by himself. It was usually shared by another believer.

Paul pondered the Old Testament, the only Bible available to him. But he gained insight into the Word as he spent a number of days with the disciples at Damascus following his conversion, Acts 9:19.

To be sure, the Holy Spirit opened his understanding to perceive the great truths of the Old Testament being unveiled in the death and resurrection of Yahshua.

Those who were with the Messiah learned directly at His feet. They could ask Him questions and He often explained truths that they understood immediately.

At other times He spoke in parables and dark sayings, which they grasped later, Luke 24:44-45.

The Apostles would teach the Jews and Gentiles. Peter, for example, taught them in Acts 2 that what they witnessed in hearing others speaking in tongues was prophesied

by Joel, Acts 2:16-39.

The Ethiopian did not understand Isaiah 53, and asked how he could, “unless some man should guide me?” Acts 8:31.

Philip began with that same Scripture and showed how these Old Testament verses spoke of the coming of Yahshua. The Ethiopian believed and Philip immersed him.

Another example is Aquila and Priscilla, who had the opportunity to meet Apollos, a man mighty in the Scripture.

But he did not comprehend the message of Yahshua, so Aquila and Priscilla expounded to him the way of Yahweh more perfectly, Acts 18:24-28.

Just by interacting and encouraging one another we can show that we are worthy of that heavenly calling.

As brethren gather, they discuss the Bible and are able to help one another come to a clearer understanding of the sense and meaning of His Word.

Ours is not a new revelation or some entirely different message that was given out of the blue sky. The message Yahweh wants us to learn and follow is already there in His Word. It is up to us to prayerfully study it and comprehend what He means.

Brethren can help us do that as often they faced the same questions themselves.

The Assembly –Yahweh’s Focus

Yahshua said that the gates of the grave would never prevail against the assembly.

That is, there would always be the true assembly somewhere on earth. In 1Timothy 3:15 Paul refers to that body as the “pillar and ground of the truth.” It is the gathered Body of Messiah that will be given the gems of truth as they faithfully meet and praise Yahweh.

Yahshua said that where two or three

are gathered in His Name, He would be there among them, Matthew 18:20. Do we realize that when we gather on the Sabbath that He is among us? His Spirit is there to guide us in praising Yahweh and giving us a deeper faith and understanding of His Word.

Citing the excuse that one is “independent” and does not get involved in organizations is really a cop-out for lacking the zeal and desire to obey Yahshua in all things. Not being willing to exercise dedication in following the Messiah’s command to have love one for another is definitely not the mark of the True Believer.

Peter likened us to “living stones” built on the cornerstone of Yahshua the Messiah, 1Peter 2:4-5. The building of this spiritual temple is best done by interaction between the gathered believers especially on the days that Yahweh has set apart for the worship of Himself.

The chiseling, shaping, and polishing of these “living stones” is taking place now. When the last of these stones, “elect and precious,” is accomplished, the Master Workman will bring us all together in the first resurrection. The temple will then be filled with His glory.

Our goal is to prepare to be worthy kings and priests in the next age, Revelation 1:6 and 20:6.

It is next to impossible to partake of such a noble task by ignoring the Body of Messiah. Only by interacting and encouraging one another through whatever gift Yahweh has given us can we show that we are worthy of that heavenly calling.

Yahweh is building a spiritual house of believers who will one day live in His Kingdom. Those who have built physical houses know of the many trials and problems that accompany such an endeavor.

How much more trying is it to build a spiritual house that is worth infinitely more than anything material we can put together on earth? Expect trials, but then overcome them. Your reward will be worth it all.

How you treat those of the Body of believers is the same as treating the Messiah Yahshua Himself, Matthew 25:40.

Let Him shape and polish you to be a fit member of the Kingdom! Don’t ignore the Body of Messiah, and therefore – don’t ignore Yahshua.

Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

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Q A

Why do you use the name Yahweh? Don’t you know that this name was invented by a Catholic monk in 1725 AD? Plus, there are 20 different ways our Heavenly Father’s name can be pronounced.

The belief that “Yahweh” originated with a Catholic monk could not be further from the truth. This statement can be proven false with a simple Google search.

The official website of the Catholic Church states: “About the 13th century the term ‘Jehovah’ appeared when Christian scholars took the consonants of ‘Yahweh’ and pronounced it with the vowels of ‘Adonai.’

This resulted in the sound ‘Yahowah,’ which has a Latinized spelling of ‘Jehovah.’ The first recorded use of this spelling was made by a Spanish Dominican monk, Raymundus Martini, in 1270” (www.catholic.com/qa/isgods-name-yahweh-or-jehovah).

This citation shows it was not “Yahweh” that was originated by a Catholic monk, but

the hybrid “Jehovah.” Additionally, scholarship overwhelmingly confirms “Yahweh” as the likely pronunciation. Evidence for this is found in ancient inscriptions dating back to the second century of the Common Era, including in early church father and gnostic sources. Following are other sources attesting to the correctness of “Yahweh.”

“The true pronunciation of the name YHWH was never lost. Several early Greek writers of the Christian Church testify that the name was pronounced ‘Yahweh’” (Encyclopaedia Judaica, vol. 7, p. 680).

“Early Christian writers, such as Clement of Alexandria in the 2nd century, had used the form Yahweh, thus this pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton was never really lost. Greek transcriptions also indicated that YHWH should be pronounced Yahweh” (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 15th ed., vol. x, p. 786).

“The pronunciation Yahweh is indicated by transliteration of the name into Greek in early Christian literature, in the form iaoue (Clement of Alexandria) or iabe (Theodoret;

We can now be heard online from Hebrew Nation Radio. Listen to the weekly Sabbath teachings of Elders Alan Mansager and Randy Folliard on Saturdays at 10 am, Pacific; 12 pm, Central; and 1 pm, Eastern, at hebrewnationonline.com. The station is dedicated to the Hebraic roots of the faith, teaching both the Torah and the truth of Yahshua the Messiah.

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Restoration Times Magazine January-February 2018

by this time Gk. b had the pronunciation of v)…Strictly speaking, Yahweh is the only ‘name’ of God. In Genesis wherever the word sem (‘name’) is associated with the divine being that name is Yahweh” (Eerdman’s Bible Dictionary, 1979 p. 478).

“Such a conclusion, giving ‘Yahweh’ as the pronunciation of the name, is confirmed by the testimony of the Fathers and gentile writers, where the forms IAO, Yaho, Yaou, Yahouai, and Yahoue appear. Especially important is the statement of Theodoret in relation to Ex. lvi., when he says: ‘the Samaritans call it [the tetragrammaton] ‘Yabe,’ the Jews call it ‘Aia’…” (The New Schaff-Herzog Religious Encyclopedia, “Yahweh,” p. 471)

In addition to early Christian sources, evidence for Yahweh is also found in the Nag Hammadi codices, dating from the 2nd to 4th century CE. This library of Gnostic writings was discovered in Upper Egypt, near Nag Hammadi, in 1945. In all, there are over 50 texts within this library. Since they are in Greek, as with the church fathers, they preserve the pronunciation.

One such book is The Secret Book of John. This codex mentions the name Yahweh and notes, “Eloim and Yawe, two names of God in the Hebrew scriptures….

Yahweh is the name of God (based on the Tetragrammaton, the ineffable fourletter name)” (Dr. Marvin Meyer, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, p. 127).

The Secret Book of John dates to the second century, as it was known to the church father Irenaeus. This was the same time-frame as Clement of Alexandria, who also confirmed the name. Even though gnosticism was rightly deemed heretical by the early church, it is another witness to the pronunciation of Yahweh.

The fact that these groups were at odds, but agreed on “Yahweh,” is significant and adds credence to this pronunciation. It verifies that “Yahweh” was widely recognized as early as the second century, nearly 700 years before any Hebrew manuscripts containing Yehovah.

Based on these ancient inscriptions, modern scholarship also favors Yahweh as the proper and correct pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton: “Correct pronunciation of the Divine Name. ‘Jehovah’ is the best known English pronunciation of the divine name, although ‘Yahweh’ is favored by most Hebrew scholars. The oldest Hebrew manuscripts present the name in the form of four consonants, commonly called the Tetragrammaton (from Greek te∙tra-, meaning ‘four,’ and gram’ma, ‘letter’). These four letters (written from right to left) are hwhy and may be transliterated into English

as YHWH (or, JHVH)” (“Jehovah,” Insight on the Scriptures, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1988. vol. 2, p. 5).

“Jehovah in that form was unknown to the ancient Israelites. In fact, Hebrew scholars say that Jehovah would have been impossible according to the strict principles of Hebrew vocalization. The God of Israel was known by a name approximately rendered into English as Yahweh” (A Book About the Bible, George Stimpson, p. 247).

“Yahweh was doubtless the approximate pronunciation of the tetragrammaton, the four-letter word YHWH, since transliterations into Gr. in early Christian literature have been found in the form of iaoue (Clement of Alexander) and iahe (Theodoret) pronounced ‘iave.’ The name is a variant connected with the verb haya, ‘to be,’ from an earlier form, hawa” (Wycliff Bible Dictionary, Charles Pfeiffer, Ed., p. 694).

“The Bible often refers to God by his proper name, which was probably pronounced Yahweh …In the Hebrew Bible, the consonants yhwh are usually to be read as Adonai…’my Lord,’ for the sake of reverence, and English versions represent the word by ‘Lord’ or (less often) ‘God’ in capital letters” (“Names of God in the Hebrew Bible,” Oxford Companion to the Bible, Bruce Metzger, Ed., p. 548).

“Although the meaning of the name remains subject to debate, Yahweh is most likely a verbal form of Heb. haya (perhaps originally hwy)…Because of the utmost sanctity ascribed to the name, Jews from postexilic times on have declined to pronounce it in public reading, and only the consonants were written (YHWH; the Dead Sea Scrolls use the archaic, ‘paleoHebrew’ script). Although the original pronunciation was thus eventually lost, inscriptional evidence favors yahwae or yahwe. The name is represented in the MT by the consonants with the vowel pointing for ‘adonay ‘Lord.’ From this derived ca.the sixteenth century the form ‘Jehovah’ (yehowah). In modern usage pious Jews often substitute the expression has-sem ‘the Name’” (“Yahweh,” The Oxford Companion to the Bible, Bruce Metzger, Ed., p. 1075).

“The scribes reasoned that if they did not point the name Yahweh then it could never be treated lightly since his name would not really be known. Initially the real pointing was probably passed along by tradition, but in time it was lost. In Exodus 20:7 the name Lord is written in capital letters according to the convention of signifying the name Yahweh, but the name as it appears in the Hebrew text is hwhy (yehowa), in which appear the consonants from the name Yahweh (hwhy [yhwh]) and the vowels from the word Lord (ynda [‘idonay]). Proof for the fabricated nature of this word are the two vowels which appear on the waw, an impossibility in Hebrew. However, until the revival of the Hebrew language in western Europe scholars read the consonants YHWH (Germans would read them as JHVH) with the vowels of ‘adonay, thereby originating the incorrect form Jehovah. This word was then introduced into English by William Tyndale and was continued by the King James Version” (The Journey from Texts to Translations, Paul D. Wegner, pp, 172-173).

There are many other scholarly sources supporting that the name of our Heavenly Father is Yahweh.

Q A

Lucifer is Latin for lightbearer or morning star. Why then does Yahshua refer to Himself as the bright and morning star, and day star (Rev. 22:16, 2Pet. 1:19)?

The name Lucifer appears once in the Scriptures: Isaiah 14:12. It is a Latin word first appearing in the fourth century Vulgate. The Hebrew is heylel, from the root halal, meaning to be clear, to shine, hence to make a show, to boast, and thus to be clamorously foolish.

Before his fall Satan was a perfect, beautiful creature, Ezekiel 28:13-15, but his vanity got the best of him. He fits the meaning of halal perfectly.

Yahshua is perfect in His beauty.

Yahshua also is given the designation of brightness, shining, and the sun. But His is the pure and true light of righteousness, not a perversion.

Q A

What are offerings used for in the New Testament? Should I give my tithes to the local food pantry and homeless shelter?

The Old Testament practice of giving tithes and offerings provides the pattern for the New Testament system. In Deuteronomy 12:8 the law says to bring offerings, sacrifices, and tithes to the special place where Yahweh chooses, verse 14. And in verse 19 He warns not to forsake the priests with tithes and offerings:

“Take heed to yourself that you forsake not the Levite as long as you live upon the earth” (Deut. 12:19).

Yahweh made a special provision for priests. In the first recorded instance of tithing, we find Abraham giving 10 percent to the priesthood, Genesis 14:18-20, who served at the tabernacle or temple. Leviticus 27:30 says the tithe belongs to Yahweh and is for the work of His ministry.

“And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is Yahweh’s: it is holy unto Yahweh.”

We find a direct parallel in the New Testament, where Paul writes, “Do you not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?” (1Cor. 9:13).

The NIV puts it this way: “[Yahweh] has commanded that those who preach the [Good News] should receive their living from the [Good News].”

An organized effort can do far more than a single person can do on his own.

So Paul and the other apostles established assemblies to do the work, not just individuals.

When support was not forthcoming, Paul even took the support from one assembly and used it to serve other assemblies.

Paul used the largess of the Macedonians (2Cor. 8:2) to test the Corinthians — to see whether they loved enough to sacrifice in a similar way. He told the Corinthian brethren, “I robbed other assemblies, taking wages of them, to do you service” (2Cor. 11:8).

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